


Take my hand (take my whole life too)

by gokatyperry



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Military, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Marine Lexa, Multi, Recreational Drug Use, eventually, there will be smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-07
Updated: 2017-02-13
Packaged: 2018-09-22 18:09:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9619112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gokatyperry/pseuds/gokatyperry
Summary: A modern 100 au set in college. Following the lives and romances of our faves, with a strong focus on Clarke and Lexa.Tags will update as story progresses





	1. September

Arkadia University was nice Clarke supposed. She’d only been there two weeks, but it was already clear that everything she’d been told about college was a lie. There was no grand feeling, no wild partying, no real “college experience” at all. Ark U was the kind of nice that looked like someone was trying too hard, like they wanted you to think you were somewhere important and doing something official instead of suffering through the capitalistic hell known as American education.

Despite the complicated relationship with her mother and mother’s boyfriend, she was glad she lived at home. Messy roommates, broken laundry machines, RA’s, and one bathroom? Clarke had no idea how her friends did it. She liked her room and the shelter it offered. The quiet solitude where no one could get to her unless she let them. She’s glad she never let _him_ taint it.

Shouting from the quad across from the bench she’s resting on drags her from her reflections. The PMA marines are training again, and one’s just done something that irked the instructor. The intricate relationship between Polis Military Academy and Arkadia University wasn’t something she understood yet. The colleges lied practically next to one another in their respective cities, something Clarke thought was probably illegal, only a fifteen minute drive (without traffic) separating the campuses. Polis was the big city with subways and skyscrapers and excitement, and Arkadia was more of the suburban living area.

Students from PMA frequented Ark U’s campus both for its superior food hall, and the hoards of horny students with a kink for fucking people in uniform. From what she’d gathered the PMA kids seemed to have a shared goal to fuck as many people as they could before deployment. It seemed like a stereotype, but some stereotypes are based in truth.

Students from both schools tended to get along, with the exception of the marines. The marines had quite the reputation for being egocentric showboating jerks who took what they wanted, when they wanted it. That’s why they chose to spend time training at ARK U every other day, half dressed and sweating in the warm sun right in the center of campus. Even though Ark U students didn’t like the marines, it certainly didn’t stop them from watching them train, although they’d never admit the hypocrisy. Clarke wasn’t sure what the big deal really was. The marines showed up, put on a show, and then left, simple as that. And who doesn’t want to watch attractive people show off in their spare time?

“At it again huh Griff?”

Clarke looks up to see Raven and Octavia hovering behind her, arms crossed and smirks wide.

“Like you’ve never looked.”

They laugh and move to sit next to her on the bench. Raven stretches back and folds her hands behind her head. “True. But you’re still the worst.”

“Whatever.” Clarke scoffs, and all three settle in to watch them do their next round of jumping jacks.

“Well shit.” Octavia exclaims. “They’ve even got Woods doin this shit.”

“Who?”

“Corporal Woods.” Raven answers like its common knowledge.

Clarke squints. She hates being out of the loop. Raven’s a technical engineer who spends a majority of her time helping out at PMA, and Octavia has been in and out of ROTC programs affiliated with them for the last year. She assumes she’ll learn more the longer she’s there, but for now she’s in the dark. “Should I know that name?”

“Naw, not unless you’re a marine I guess. But everyone does anyway.” Raven says, and Octavia grimaces.

“She’s a fucking tyrant.”

“Which one is she?”

“The dark haired one that looks like she killed a man this morning with her bare hands.”

Clarke rolls her eyes. “That doesn’t help O.”

Raven laughs. “Front row, three in from the right.”

The marines were moderately far away, but they were close enough for Clarke to get a good look at Corporal Woods. Clarke decides Octavia’s description was pretty accurate.

“Should she not be training?”

“Well she’s a corporal.” Octavia snaps, annoyed that Clarke still hasn’t grasped the way things worked.

Raven snorts, but she cuts Clarke a break and changes the subject. “Look at those poor suckers in the back.”

“How long do you think it’ll be before all but two of them drop out?” Octavia asks.

The recruits in the last row are clearly struggling, and Clarke figures from the way her friends talk it must be their first year. “Don’t they have to pass a fitness test or something?”

O shakes her head. “Not till after the first six months. You pick a branch or you go undecided, and then you train for the first six months, and once that’s up you either take the test to see if you cut it or you switch branches, or you drop out completely.”

“That’s a good way to do it I guess.” Clarke shrugs.

“Kind of.” Raven nods. “Problem is a lot of the real training comes after that.”

Octavia’s phone buzzes hard and she rolls her eyes as she looks to see whose calling.

“Bellamy?” Clarke guesses.

“Who else would it be?” Octavia spits.

“He’s just trying to be a good brother.”

“Well he needs to back the fuck off.”

Clarke exhales sharply and shares a knowing glance with Raven, letting the “maybe if you’d stop getting kicked out of the army he wouldn’t have to worry” go unspoken.

Octavia stands sharply, tucking her phone into her back pocket. “I’m going to class. I’ll see you guys later.”

They wave goodbye and watch as Octavia storms off towards her class. Octavia had quite the attitude, and Clarke had learned long ago it was easier to just let her get it all out than to press whatever subject was pissing her off.

“So you’re starting at the hospital tonight?” Raven asks, ignoring Octavia’s tantrum.

“Yeah.”

“You don’t seem too excited.” Clarke licks her lips and Raven elbows her playfully. “Come on, it’ll be fun. There’ll be paperwork and scrubs and maybe a kid with a bloody nose!”

“Was that supposed to excite me?”

Raven pulls a face. “Guess it’s not. I’ll text you though!”

“I’m not sure I can text on the job.”

“Like you actually care.”

“Fair enough.”

They sink into a comfortable silence and go back to watching the marines.

* * *

 

The next few days are uneventful. Bellamy’s started chess club so he’s never around, and it isn’t quite football or hockey season yet so they don’t have any games to go to. Abby’s been harassing her about her shifts at the hospital since she started, and Clarke’s glad there’s as many injuries as there are because it means her mother is too busy to hunt her down and bug her in person.

It’s a Wednesday night, by far the quietest she’s noticed, and her shifts been crawling by. A lanky freshman boy came in for a nosebleed (jasper, for the third time that week. Clarke thinks he needs to get his sinuses checked) and she got a surprise visit from Raven just because. A girl gets food poisoning, another needs her stiches fixed. There’s only ten minutes of her shift left when things finally get exciting.

A page goes over the hospital com requesting medical assistance on the lower floor, and she’s excited until she gets there and sees the chaos. Half the floor is filled with staff rushing by and the other half is filled with bleeding, screaming, marines. Her first thought is that they’re at war, which would be ridiculous all things considered, but it was a kneejerk reaction to the scene before her.

“YOU STUPID MOTHER FUCKER! LOOK WHAT YOU DID!”

Clarke looks towards the yelling and sees several hospital staff trying to restrain a very angry Corporal Woods, who’s currently screaming at another very upset and injured marine.

“THIS IS WHY YOU FOLLOW ORDERS. WHEN YOU START FUCKING AROUND PEOPLE GET HURT.” The boy she’s screaming at has his eyes screwed shut and the Corporal breaks free from the nurses grasp and grabs his head, turning it towards the other injured marines. “LOOK AT THEM. LOOK AT THEM PRIVATE.”

Clarke watches as her mother appears from within the chaos and literally drags the corporal aside. She can’t hear what she’s saying but whatever it is, it seems to get the corporal to calm down a bit, or at least to stop screaming. Her mother points to a room off to the side and the corporal begrudgingly enters it, the door slamming hard behind her, audible even over the chaos.

Her mother finds her next and fills her in quickly. A routine grenade demonstration backfired when a young private, (Clarke thinks it safe to assume it was the one being yelled at) disobeyed orders and began horsing around. No one seems to be hurt too badly, but they’re all shaken up nonetheless and there’s a lot of them. “I’ve calmed Corporal Woods down but I doubt she’ll respond well to medical attention from me. Can you take care of her?”

Clarke nods, trying to suck down any nervousness she has about interacting with her.

Corporal Woods is sitting on the bed when she enters, eyes closed and head thrown back against the wall. She’s dripping blood from her left arm and leg. Clarke can already tell that the wounds aren’t deep, but they need to be treated regardless.

The Corporal opens her eyes when Clarke enters and frowns. “Go help someone else.”

The disdain in the comment irks Clarke, but she responds with an icy calm. “With an attitude like that you’d be lucky if I don’t choose to let you bleed to death.”

The corporal’s jaw visibly clenches. “I can wait. Those privates need your help more than I do.”

“Well,” Clarke shrugs, “I got orders to care for you. You of all people should know the importance of orders considering you were screaming at a scared kid about them a few minutes ago.”

The corporal’s stare is terrifying and angry, but Clarke swallows down her fear and holds her gaze.

“You should watch how you speak to me.”

“You shouldn’t scream at your troop members like that.”

“When you’re at war-“

“We aren’t at war.”

“You aren’t.”

Clarke sighs, knowing neither of them are going to budge on this. She could argue all day but she’s got wounds to treat, homework to avoid, and school in the morning. “Look. I understand you have your reasons, but all I’m saying is screaming at them while they’re injured doesn’t seem like a good way to lead. Now shut the fuck up and let me patch you up so we can both go our separate ways and never have to speak again.”

She knows the attitude she’d given the corporal was disrespectful, but Lexa’s status doesn’t excuse her from being an asshole. The corporal’s jaw is tight, but she doesn’t say another word as Clarke patches her up. She’s still and tense and Clarke isn’t sure she’s even breathing at times. When Clarke finishes, the corporal stands and leaves without another word.

* * *

 

News of the incident has spread across campus by morning. Rumors have developed about an inside job, conspiracy theories about creating public chaos, ISIS; she rolls her eyes at all of them. Her friends are moderately disinterested in the whole ordeal up until Clarke mentions the corporal.

Octavia’s practically orgasming when Clarke tells her about the attitude she’d given her, and Murphy actually does get a boner, although that’s not new for him all things considered.

They’re having lunch in the common dining area and Clarke has to keep reminding them to keep their voices down so no one else hears, which with her group is a nearly impossible feat. They only quiet when none other than Corporal Woods herself enters the hall, baby blues perfectly fitted, cold unnerving gaze stonelike as always as she scans the room.

“Shit Clarke she’s looking at you,” Jasper warns her through a hushed whisper.

“Shut up Jas-“

“No really she’s looking-“

“Shit she’s coming this way.”

“She’s going to kill you.”

“Run now.”

“She looks pissed.”

“She always looks pissed.”

“Shut up she’s almost here.”

“Oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck oh-“

“Good afternoon.” The corporal’s standing tall at the end of their table, eyes fixed on Clarke as though she’s the only one in the room. “If you have a moment, I was hoping I might speak with you outside.”

Clarke looks quickly to her friends for help, but all are avoiding eye contact. “Um, sure. Just give me a minute.”

The corporal nods and turns swiftly, walking out of the hall and towards the front of the building.

Miller leans in closely. “Clarke she’s literally going to murder you.”

“Don’t go out there.” Monty adds.

Clarke shakes her head and stands with a huff. “Someone say something reassuring.”

Harper smiles, “She looks hot as fuck in that uniform, so at least you have eye candy to look at while being murdered.”

Harper wasn’t wrong, Corporal Woods looked hot as fuck in her uniform, but it wasn’t much consolation. She knows there’s no logical reason to be nervous, but the corporal is intimidating and her friend’s vague and haunting descriptions of her have gotten to Clarke.

The corporal’s waiting patiently for her outside, her face expressionless.

It would be polite to greet the corporal, well, more politely, but Clarke’s still a bit pissed about the girl’s attitude the night before. “Did you come here to scream some more?”

The corporal doesn’t reply, but instead passes her a small envelope. Clarke takes it and opens it, revealing a small folded up sheet of paper with three words scrawled on it.

                I’m sorry – Lexa

“Not Corporal?”

“I thought my name would be more personal.”

“Did you apologize to your troops?”

Lexa tilts her chin up slightly. “That’s none of your concern.”

“So you apologize to me but not to your fellow marines?”

“Look,” Lexa sighs, “I came here to apologize. You can accept that apology or not.”

Clarkes reply comes without hesitation. “I choose not.” She shoves the note back into Lexa’s arms and walks away, leaving Lexa standing there dazed. She makes sure to do “the walk” as she heads back. It’s strong and confident and made Jasper nearly piss himself the first time she used it on him. She doesn’t need to look back to know it’s having the same effect on Lexa.

* * *

 

By the next day news of Lexa’s rejection had also spread its way across campus, courtesy of Octavia. Clarke would have felt bad if Lexa wasn’t such an incorrigible arrogant asshole. The blow to the ego seems like it was a long time coming.

Bellamy convinces her to skip her pottery class to go for a drive with him to his favorite café for lunch. It didn’t take much, in fact it didn’t take any convincing at all, because as far as he was concerned her class had been cancelled. He always preached about breaking rules and chaos but yet every time she took a risk he lectured her about it. It was almost as bad as he was with Octavia, and sometimes Clarke prayed she’d do something stupid so he’d back off of her.

She sees his minivan parked in its usual spot in the back of the lot and hops into the passenger’s seat.

She nearly screams at the chorus of “HI MOM!” that greets her next. Jasper, Monty, Murphy and Miller had been hiding in the back with the intention of scaring her.

“Dad said we could come.” Jasper laughs and Monty cringes.

“Still not sold on calling him dad.”

“It’s fine with me.” Murphy shrugs.

“You can’t want to fuck your dad bro.” Miller says, “Right mom?”

Clarke rolls her eyes at all of them. Ever since Bellamy had inherited his mom’s old minivan their friends (with the exception of Octavia and Raven) had taken to pretending he and Clarke were married and were their parents. The joke itself was fine and even though she hated to admit it, extremely fitting; but sometimes she wasn’t sure just how much of a joke her friends thought it was. “No Raven?” She doesn’t mind hanging out with just the boys, but having Raven around helps keep her grounded.

“No,” Jasper replies, “She wouldn’t skip NASA class.”

“Don’t think that’s a thing.”

“It is.” Bellamy says, smirking mischievously at her. “A princess like you wouldn’t understand.”

“Don’t make me kill you.”

“ooo mom and dad are fighting.”

The reply comes in unison. “Shut up Murphy.”

They spend the car ride having a heated discussion about installing a DVD player in the van. Bellamy is the only hold out, but since it’s his van his word is final. (At least until Monty hacks into the car and installs one overnight.)

They end up at Panera, eating soup, salad, and sandwiches and having an oddly intimate discussion about feelings. Miller tells them about his upcoming date with a hockey player from New Brunshwitch named Bryan. Harper introduced them after they’d met at the local LGBTQA support group she volunteered at. Jasper made a joke about how Bryan would feel sharing him with Harper, and promptly was told to shut up. Clarke noticed Monty was unusually quiet, but when asked he said he was just thinking about an upcoming stats exam. She feels her phone buzz and sees a text from Bellamy.

Bellamy: There is no stats exam??

Clarke: you sure?

Bellamy: yes Clarke I’m sure.

The conversation has already moved onto Jasper daydreaming about Maya before they can address Monty’s coverup.                                                          

\---- --

Jasper, Monty, and Miller get dropped off at back at school, and Murphy heads with Clarke and Bellamy back to Bellamy’s townhouse. Murphy immediately grabs his favorite bong and flops against the couch. “I think Monty’s gay.”

“You’re gay.” Bellamy snorts.

Murphy takes a large hit before replying. “I like pussy. Just like Clarke.” He shoots her a wink.

“I also like dick.”

“I like my dick.”

“Oh my god,” Bellamy facepalms. “That doesn’t count.”

 He and Clarke join Murphy on the couch and soon all discussion of Monty is long forgotten.

* * *

 

Lexa shows up at Clarke’s doorstep that night, holding a bouquet of flowers and a note that looks suspiciously like the one she’d tried to give earlier.

“Is this the same note as earlier?”

Lexa frowns but pushes the flowers and note closer to Clarke. She hesitates to take them, considering if she should even bother to, but curiosity gets the best of her.

She raises an unimpressed brow as she sees it is the same note, but Lexa stands tall. “I had an adult conversation with my fellow marines. No yelling involved. And I apologize for my behavior towards you yesterday. It was unbecoming of anyone, let alone a marine Corporal. I was upset, and you were just trying to do what you thought was best.”

Clarke feels a small smile start to creep up but she pushes it back down. Lexa’s apology seems sincere, even if it is blunt and awkward. She thinks maybe that’s the best Lexa can do and decides to cut the corporal a break. “I was disrespectful to you too.” It isn’t an apology, she doesn’t quite want to give one yet, but it helps clear the air.

Lexa nods in acknowledgment of the statement and passes the bouquet of flowers towards her. “This is for you.”

Clarke’s not a flower person, but even she can tell they are beautiful and were handpicked with careful thought. She accepts them, though one thing is still bugging her. “Can I ask how you knew where I lived? And how you knew how to find me earlier? Or how you even knew my name?”

She swears she sees a small smile appear on Lexa’s face for a split second. “All fair questions. I was intent on finding you and apologizing so I went back to the hospital and asked for you. You weren’t there, but they did tell me your name, which I used to ask around and find you.”

“That certainly is dedication.”

“As I said, I was intent on apologizing.”

They stand for a moment in silence, and Clarke is unsure exactly what to say next. She figures she should be polite and offer her a drink. “Did you want to come inside?”

Lexa licks her lips and shifts her gaze from Clarke for just a moment. “Err, thank you, but I do have to get back to base. We’re treating the privates to surprise barrack inspections.”

“Fun.” Clarke states bluntly.

Lexa shrugs. “Sergeants orders. She’s even more displeased about the recent incident than I am.”

“Speaking of which, how is everyone?” She gestures towards Lexa’s injured side. “How are you?”

“I’ve had worse. And as for the recruits, they’re miserable.”

“Don’t know why I thought the answer would be different.”

Lexa lets out a miniscule chuckle at this, before offering out her hand. “I really must go, but I’m glad we’re on better terms.”

Clarke takes her hand and tries to match Lexa’s intensely strong grip, hoping she’s doing somewhat ok. “Me too.”

“Have a good night Clarke.”

Clarke watches Lexa turn and walk down her driveway back towards PMA. She smirks to herself, proud at how she managed to earn an apology and flowers from “the commander”. Octavia’s gunna flip.

Octavia….

“Wait Lexa!”

Lexa stops halfway down the street to face her. “Corporal Woods.”

Lexa’s refusal to be called by her own name irks Clarke, but she doesn’t care enough at the moment to be annoyed. “Right. Corporal Woods. Uh, does the name Octavia Blake mean anything to you?”

Lexa frowns. “She’s unfit for military service.”

That’s definitely not what Clarke was expecting to or wanted to hear, but she decides to ask anyway. “I know she’s rough around the edges, and I know there’s probably nothing you can do especially because she isn’t in your branch, but she’s a fighter in and out. If she could just get one more chance-“

Lexa starts to protest, but she restrains herself and exhales deeply though her nose. “You have faith in her?”

Clarke licks her lips. Octavia’s, well, she’s Octavia. But right now the military is all she wants, and as her friend, she only wants to help. “Yes.”

“You hesitated.”

Clarke hadn’t realized she had, but nothing seemed to get past the corporal.

Lexa offers an apologetic look. “You know there’s nothing I can do. But it was noble of you to ask.”

Clarke purses her lips. “Yeah.”

“It seems we’re on bad terms once again.” Lexa states, “I just can’t manage to stay on your good side huh?”

“Who said you were ever on my good side?” Clarke makes sure to match the retort with a teasing raise of her brow so Lexa knew she was kidding. Or at least....slightly kidding.

“Fair enough.” Lexa glances at her watch. “I really must be going. Goodnight.”

“Night.”

Clarke watches her jog down the street, heading back inside once Lexa was out of sight. She’d survived another encounter with the infamous Corporal. She was terrifying at times sure, and damn attractive, and as much as she didn’t want to admit it Lexa was kind of charming.

Marcus is reading the paper at the kitchen island like he always does around this time, and she hopes she can sneak past him and head to her room. She likes him, it just feels wrong letting him into her life so soon.

“Hey Clarke.”

_Shit…_

“Hey Marcus.”

He’s smiling over the paper at her, his glasses resting on the edge of his nose. “Flowers. That’s new.”

Clarke glances down at the flowers still in her hand, honestly having forgotten she was holding them. “Uh, yeah.”

“You should put them in some water.”

“Right.”

Clarke grabs a vase out of the cabinet and fills it with some water before putting the bouquet inside and setting it by the window. Marcus notices the way she stares at them for just a moment longer than necessary before she heads up to her room, but he chooses not to mention it.


	2. Sept. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> screw it have chapter 2. its not perfect but ehhh

Lexa’s never been so excited for the weekend to come as she is now. Typically, weekends meant hours of trying to find things to do. She was a stickler for routine, though how much of that was born out of the marines was unclear, and the weekends meant no built in structure. Usually she trained most of the day, did some laundry if she could manage to snag one of the two working washing machines, and often she’d end up reading. Sometimes she’d talk to Costia, but usually she was spending her weekends traveling or working, so Lexa ended up even lonelier on the weekends.

This weekend however, she had a special treat for herself. The local museum was having a free art exhibition and one of her classes was giving extra credit for attending. She figured it was something different, and something to do, so she decided to go. 

The construction on fifth slowed down her walk as foot traffic increased on her route from the detour. Sometimes it was easy to forget that she was in a big city because of the suburban style areas just next door in Arkadia. The museum is also busier than normal because of the exhibition and some local vendors have taken advantage of that, parking themselves along the road outside. The museum didn’t allow food or drink inside so Lexa wasn’t sure there was much of a point to selling outside of it, but to each their own.

She takes her time walking through the exhibit, analyzing each piece as she goes. She appreciates most forms of creative expression, but art has a tendency to baffle her. Beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder. As expected a few of her classmates are there, but when she turns from looking at a painting she sees someone she honestly didn’t think she’d see again.

Clarke is looking at a painting just to the right of her. She looks nice (really, really nice) but Lexa thinks she’s dressed too warmly for the current weather. She is aware of her own raised metabolism and the benefits of better temperature regulation, but the scarf is a bit much, even if it does look perfect on Clarke.

She mulls over an opening line, something clever but not embarrassing. She sees Clarke start to move away and she settles for one. “It seems we’ve crossed paths again.”

Clarke whips around towards her, and stares for a moment before smiling in recognition. “I almost didn’t recognize you out of uniform.”

“I look that different?”

“Yes actually. But the USMC shirt gave it away. I’m assuming that means the marines and isn’t a band or something right?”

Lexa laughs, actually flat out laughs at that, and Clarke’s a taken back by how human the other girl looks. “Yes, it’s the United States Marine Corps,” she replies.

“Awesome. Score 1 for Clarke.” She shifts her weight.  “I never pegged you as an art person.”

“I try to keep a wide set of interests.”

“That’s good.”

“And it’s extra credit to be here.”

“Ahhh.”

“Out of curiosity, what did you peg me as?”

“I dunno, I guess I saw a lot of…kickboxing, shooting stuff, ya know just,” Clarke clenches her fists to emphasize intenseness.

“You aren’t entirely wrong.” Lexa admits. “What brings you here?”

“I’m an artist.” Clarke replies. “Well, I draw sometimes.”

“I’m sure you’re very good.”

Clarke shrugs. “I’m in a bit of a block right now. I feel like I need to do something, but I don’t know what.”

Lexa shifts and folds her hands behind her back. “You’ll figure something out.”

They go back to looking at the piece in front of them, though neither are really looking so much as trying to keep things from getting too awkward.

“Any plans for after?” Clarke asks.

“Probably read. I might go to the gym.”

Clarke can’t help but feel bad for the corporal. It was pretty clear Lexa didn’t have many friends, and Clarke knew she had a clawing need to make others feel better. “You wanna come get coffee? Some friends and I are going.”

“ah.” Lexa considers the offer for a moment. She certainly is interested in getting coffee with a girl as beautiful as Clarke, but she isn’t keen on anyone else being there. ” I think I’ll pass this time, but thank you for the invitation.” She notices Clarke’s face fall slightly and adds, “I don’t do well in group functions.”

“You’d go if it was just me?”

Clarke’s tone makes it sound like flirting and it makes Lexa’s heart flutter, but she forces herself not to read into it. “You seem to be one of the few people who can tolerate me. I have to take what I can get I suppose.”

The confirmation of her suspicions hurts, but Clarke doesn’t want to make her pity obvious. “Why is that exactly?”

“You remember me the other night? At the hospital?”

“Cold. Aggressive. A total jerk?”

“Thank you for reminding me. But yes, all that. That’s me most of the time.”

Clarke’s staring at her curiously and Lexa wishes she could read minds. After a beat Clarke takes out her phone and passes it to her, instructing her to add her number, and Lexa thinks maybe she’s done something right. “Another time maybe?”

“Just us?”

“Just us.”

Lexa adds her name and number and passes the phone back to Clarke, who looks at the new entry and smiles.

“Just Lexa? You sure you’re ok not going by Corporal?

Lexa smiles again, knowing it’s a slight jab at their last conversation. “Just Lexa. I figured it’d be a little more personal.”

They part ways after that and Clarke meets up with her friends at the nearby Starbucks. Five dollars for a coffee was ludicrous but she had no self control when it came to venti caramel frappes. She feels good about her exchange with Lexa, and not just because she helped someone. She’s intrigued by Lexa and the prospect of a new friend.

When she arrives Miller is going on and on about how excited he is for hockey season to start and the new team and all sorts of stuff Clarke never took the time to understand. Harper is clinging to his side as usual. They’re both gay but she’s never seen two people more attached. They skype Wells from the café but give up after the call drops for the third time. Octavia and Bellamy start to argue for the fifth time that day but Murphy manages to diffuse the situation by spilling his drink all over himself. Raven finally asks her how the exhibit was and listens attentively as she talks about it, which Clarke appreciates because at least one of her friends likes to listen to her.

She doesn’t mention Lexa.

* * *

 

Lexa’s sitting on her favorite bench in Polis Hall, overlooking the square below. It’s prettier in the winter, when the white snow blankets the building tops and coats the trees, but even now it’s still her favorite place. Her body is sore from her healing wounds, aggravated by hours of intense training, but she isn’t concerned with the pain. The only thing on her mind is Clarke.

Clarke, who stood her ground when Lexa was acting like an ass. Clarke who wouldn’t take a half-assed apology for apologies sake. Clarke who had the prettiest eyes and the best smile.

She thinks it logical that she’s so attracted to Clarke. She hasn’t had proper interaction with someone in years, so it’s only natural she’d be drawn to the one person who’s paid her interest. But there’s something else there, something she thinks goes deeper than simply needing human contact.

 She needs advice.

Lexa: How does one make friends without being creepy?

Costia: lol that’s an interesting question

Lexa: I think I’ve found a friend, but I’m not sure how to engage, or even if I should.

Costia: Still overcomplicating things I see :p  just go with it Lexa. There’s no formula for making friends, you just go with it.

Lexa: noted.

Costia: you’re doing it again

Lexa: also noted.

Lexa: J

Costia: nerd J Call me later?

Lexa: Always.

 

She sighs, putting her phone away and taking a sip of her scalding hot tea. It’s the quiet moments like these that allow her to dwell on what her life would be like if she wasn’t enlisted. Maybe she’d have a job, a girlfriend, an apartment all her own, friends, a real life. A happy life.

She hates moments like these.

And she hates knowing that she wouldn’t have had that life even if she hadn’t joined the marines.

She finishes her tea faster than she’d like and heads back to the campus gym to clear her head.

* * *

 

Clarke’s still on campus after agreeing to meet Bellamy at the library for a little while he worked on his English assignment, but it’s late and she’s had enough of the day. She cuts through the dining hall, which she knows will be open for at least another fifteen minutes, figuring she can grab a coffee or snack before she heads home. To her dismay, the coffee station is already closed. It doesn’t make sense to her. This was a college campus not a sleep clinic. Coffee should be readily available at all times.

She passes the couches in the center of the hall and sees the camo uniform of a sleeping marine clearly against the red fabric of the couch. She’s passed out across it, her drawstring bag tucked underneath her torso and a half drank ice coffee resting on the floor next to her. Clarke almost walks by until she realizes the person sleeping there is Lexa. She figures it’s only polite to have a familiar face wake the girl before the staff comes and kicks her out at close.

She taps the marines shoulder a few times and attempts to wake her but to no avail. After a few more attempts she googles “reveille” and places her phone by Lexa’s head as it plays. It’s a bit of a dick move but it works and Lexa jolts up and nearly falls off the couch, looking wide eyed towards Clarke. It takes her a minute to gather her surroundings and when she does she checks her watch before looking back up to Clarke.

“I fell asleep.”

“I noticed.”

Lexa blinks a few times. “Did you play reveille?”

“I tried tapping you first.”

“Clever.” Lexa double checks she still has her bag and moves over so Clarke has room, motioning lazily for her to sit. They’ve still got a few minutes before they get kicked out, so she obliges.

“What kind of coffee did you get?”

“What?” Lexa looks around briefly until she notices her drink on the floor next to her. “Right.”

“You are tired huh?”

“Very. And an ice caramel macchiato.” Lexa replies. “It’s…… different.”

“How do you normally take it? Black?” The question is half serious and half joking, but unsurprisingly black is exactly how Lexa prefers her coffee.

“The girl in front of me in line recommended it. She looked trustworthy enough.” Lexa picks the cup up and takes a sip. “It’s good I suppose, just different.”

“You’d probably hate what I drink.”

Lexa offers the coffee to her. “You want the rest?”

Clarke absolutely does, but she’s hesitant to tell Lexa that. The marine notices her apprehension and assures her it’s ok, and Clarke wastes no more time taking the cup.

They sit until a janitor comes and politely reminds them they’re closing, at which time Clarke manages to absolutely appall Lexa when she makes an offhanded comment about having to walk home. It had been a nice day and she’d walked there with the intention of leaving much earlier, and now that the sun had gone down the temperature had dropped beyond her comfort zone. She tells Lexa she’s alright but Lexa’s adamant about walking her so she isn’t alone in the dark.

“It isn’t safe Clarke. A woman walking home in the dark alone is a great risk.”

“What about you?”

“I am trained extensively in hand to hand combat and with multiple weapons. My safety is of no concern.”

Lexa’s training eases Clarke’s nerves a little but she still insists Lexa text her when she gets back to base safely.

The walk home is brisk, partially due to the slight chill, and partially because Lexa has quite a powerful stride. It’s a short walk and they don’t talk much, but neither of them mind it. Lexa walks her right up to her doorstep and Clarke hopes her mother isn’t snooping, knowing there will be an onslaught of questions if she is. She’s about to thank Lexa when she sees her lean in and feels her lips warm and gentle against her cheek.

When Lexa pulls back Clarke sees a glimpse of nervousness, but Lexa hides it expertly. She straightens and puffs out her chest. “I know I’m being forward, but I like you, and I would love to see you again.”

Clarke’s intrigued and surprised, but definitely interested. Lexa is strange and unlike anyone she’s met before, but there’s something about her that Clarke likes. “Thanks for making sure I got home safe corporal,” She winks. It’s flirty and isn’t really a reply to Lexa’s courting, but that’s exactly what she wants. She leaves Lexa confused on her porchstep and once inside tries to calm her heart down as it flutters inside her chest.

* * *

 

A week goes by without contact from Lexa and Clarke worries that maybe the marine had taken her flirting as a flat-out rejection instead of playing hard to get. She texts a quick “hey” with a smile and hopes that Lexa responds soon, although it’s the middle of a Tuesday so she’s probably doing, whatever exactly it is that the marines do.

Bellamy has been acting strange lately. He hasn’t been hooking up with anyone, and he’s been much quieter than usual at group hangouts. Raven tells her it’s because of Octavia. PMA took her back in, something Octavia neglected to tell any of them, and now apparently she’s been sleeping with a 26 year old from the air force. It’s not a bad thing inherently, but for someone like Octavia jumping into a relationship with someone roughly eight years older was probably not a well thought out decision. Clarke surprises him with a box of donut holes and a DVD of history channel documentaries. She hates them, but he doesn’t and this is about him. Octavia thinks she does too much for Bellamy, but he always takes care of her when she PMS’s, and it’s just what friends do. He gives her two hugs that night, once upon arrival and once as she leaves, and she calls him a softy both times. He also asks her if she’s seeing anyone yet, but she deflects the point by saying the night was about him.

One long documentary later Miller comes back from his date with Bryan, spinning wildly and falling across them. “Mom, dad, I just had sex.”

“Ew get off Bro,” Bellamy laughs, shoving him to the floor. “If you did anal you should wash your dick.”

Clarke and Miller send him looks and he shrugs. “What? It’s good hygiene.”

“You do a lot of anal?” Clarke asks, immediately pressing a finger to his lips. “No don’t answer that. I don’t want to know.”

“Anal is fun Clarke.” Miller states from the floor. “But no it was just a bj. Still great though.”

“Sex on the first date. You scoundrel.” Bellamy jokes.

Miller rolls and launches himself upright and heads towards the mini fridge to grab himself a beer. “Hey has Monty been acting weird lately or is it just me?”

“No, we noticed too.” Clarke replies.

Bellamy frowns. “He won’t tell anyone what’s up, not even Jasper.”

“I think I’m gunna have Harper talk to him. She’s trained at shit like that.” Miller finishes his beer in record time and crushes the can, tossing it to the side. “Welp. I’m going to bed. Use a condom guys.”

Neither acknowledge his comment.

* * *

 

Lexa’s bed is still warm from the night before though the girl who occupied it with her is long gone. She’s never done something casual like this before, and it probably would have been more enjoyable had she not been thinking of Clarke the whole time. She doesn’t remember the girls name, but she does remember the blonde hair and blue eyes and how she kept thinking how they couldn’t match up to Clarke’s. She feels bad, because the girl had been genuinely sweet and she’d taken the plunge with her out of honest interest, but halfway through she’d realized it wasn’t as enjoyable as she’d wanted.

She was fixated on Clarke.

She’s taken aback when she checks her phone to find it blown up with messages for the first time in years.

Luna: heard the news. Hope you’re happy.

Sarah: last night was fun J I can still feel your tongue. Maybe I can return the favor sometime?

Roan: enjoy the extra sleep. Meet me for drills at noon?

Lincoln: Luna’s pissed at you. What did you do now? :p

Costia: morning commander! Check the link I sent you, you’ll scream

Clarke: hey :)

She deletes Luna’s immediately, send a confirmation to Roan, saves Costia and Sarah’s for later, replies “a girl” to Lincoln, and then tackles Clarke. She wants to get some confirmation on the state of their relationship, but she also doesn’t want to pressure Clarke.

Lexa: Good morning.

Clarke: It wasn’t a rejection the other day

Lexa reads the text twice just to make sure she got it right. God she feels stupid.

Lexa: oh. That’s nice to hear.

Clarke: I was trying to play hard to get.

Lexa: It worked too well, wouldn’t you say?

Clarke: Are you free today?

Lexa: Unfortunately not. Would you like to meet up Saturday?

Clarke: Sure. Coffee and brunch?

Lexa: I look forward to it.

 

She deletes Sarah’s text.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I know i have a habit of not finishing fics but i'm trying. Please leave comments and kudos and questions below! I want to hear your thoughts and opinions and what you think is going to happen in the future.  
> NO FIGHTING. and no being a jerk.


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